Hammers' Holocaust memorial

West Ham United continued their commitment to promotion of tolerance and inclusion in 2013 by marking Holocaust Memorial Day before Saturday's Barclays Premier League meeting with Queens Park Rangers.

Holocaust Memorial Day has traditionally been observed with candle lighting to represent the six million Jewish victims of the Holocaust. Each remembrance candle is lit to represent one million victims.

Therefore, 15 minutes before kick-off, six candles were lit at the Boleyn Ground by West Ham United Non-Executive Director Daniel Harris, Football Association Director of Football Development Sir Trevor Brooking, Mayor of Newham Sir Robin Wales, Holocaust Survivor Zigi Shipper, Royal British Legion East Ham branch secretary Ken Hill and Marc Bandel, the grandson of a Holocaust Survivor.

As part of its Moore Than A Football Club mantra, the club remains committed to tackling discrimination in whatever form it takes and will be promoting events and campaigns that highlight and combat prejudice towards disability, race, sex, sexual orientation and religion throughout the year.

As well as marking Holocaust Memorial Day - which will be held this year on 27 January - at the game, the club will also be sending representatives to the local events in remembrance of the estimated eleven million people who were killed by the Nazis during World War Two.

Jews, homosexuals, Jehovah's Witnesses, Soviet prisoners of war, people of Roma and Sinti origin and the disabled were among those who needlessly died.

The aim for this year's Holocaust Memorial Day events is to 'build a bridge' between communities, which ties in perfectly with West Ham United's commitment to equality, social inclusion and community cohesion.

To learn more about the Holocaust, visit the Holocaust Educational Trust website at www.HET.org.uk